Search

Elastic neutron scattering angular distributions from Na have been measured for incident neutron energies between 1.0 and 4.0 MeV at the University of Kentucky Accelerator Laboratory using neutron time-of-flight techniques for the scattered neutrons. This is an energy region in which existing data are very sparse. Measurements are compared with the predictions of the light particle-induced reaction code TALYS. The calculations reproduce forward angle scattering but have difficulty with relative minima in the differential cross section and large-angle scattering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present communication, we have theoretically investigated and studied the reflection properties of one-dimensional birefringent-dielectric photonic crystal (1D BDPC) structure consisting alternate layers of BD material. From the analysis of the reflectance spectra it is found that 100% reflection region for both TE- and TM-mode can be enhanced significantly in comparison with 1D dielectric-dielectric photonic crystal (DDPC). In order to obtain the reflection spectra of the proposed structure we have used the transfer matrix method (TMM). The structure proposed by us, has a wider omni-directional reflection (ODR) range in comparison to conventional all dielectric photonic crystals (PCs). The width of ODR can be enlarged by considering the suitable choice of lattice parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Snow trout, Schizothorax plagiostomus (Heckel) is most important commercial food fish of Garhwal Himalaya inhabited among the snow fed tributaries of river Ganga. In present study the induced breeding were carried out by stripping method and it was noticed that the survival of larvae were high, near (95-100%), at high density and the lowest survival rate was observed at the lowest density (less than 5%). The mechanism responsible for the observed density dependent survival was not under stood. It is possible that the concentration of substance secreted by larvae as well as change in larval behaviors is responsible factors for survival in higher concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Healthy term babies undergo a physiological nadir in serum calcium levels by 24-48 hours of age. This nadir may be related to the delayed response of parathyroid and calcitonin hormones in a newborn. This nadir may drop to hypocalcemic levels in high-risk neonates including infants of diabetic mothers, preterm infants and infants with perinatal asphyxia. This early onset hypocalcemia which presents within 72 hours, requires treatment with calcium supplementation for at least 72 hours. In contrast late onset hypocalcemia usually presents after 7 days and requires long term therapy. Ionized calcium is crucial for many biochemical processes and total serum calcium is a poor substitute for the diagnosis of hypocalcemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case of Aspergillus flavus keratitis treated successfully with 4% suspension of thiabendazole is reported. This seems to be the first case of successful treatment of keratomycosis with thiabendazole. All other reported cases treated with this drug either had their eyes removed or did not retain any useful vision. Its ability to penetrate ocular tissues, ability to remain in concentrations higher than the minimal inhibitory concentration of many fungi, and broad spectrum of activity make it a worthwhile drug for further investigation in keratomycosis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Carbonaceous species (elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC)) and water-soluble inorganic species (Na + , NH 4 + , K + , Ca 2 + , Mg 2 + , Cl − , NO 3 − , SO 4 2 − ) in PM 10 and PM 2.5 from Ahmedabad and Jodhpur (urban and semi-urban locations, respectively) in western India were measured during May–September, 2011. Stable isotope composition of carbonaceous aerosol (δ 13 C of TC) in PM 10 samples was also determined. Average EC concentration in PM 10 at Ahmedabad was 1 μg m − 3 (range: 0.34 to 3.4 μg m − 3 ), almost 80% of which remained in PM 2.5 . Similarly, 70% of EC in PM 10 (average: 0.9 μg m − 3 ) resided in PM 2.5 at Jodhpur. Average OC concentration at Ahmedabad was 6.4 μg m − 3 and ~ 52% of this was found in PM 2.5 . On the contrary, OC concentration at Jodhpur was 40 μg m − 3 , 80% of which was found in coarse particles contributing substantially to aerosol mass. δ 13 C of TC (average: − 27.5‰, range: − 29.6 to − 25.8‰) along with WSOC/EC ratio shows an increasing trend at Jodhpur suggesting the possibility of aging of aerosol, since aging results in enrichment of heavier isotope. OC and WSOC show significant correlations with K + and not with EC, indicating biogenic origin of OC. Different size distributions are also exhibited by WSOC at the two stations. On the other hand, δ 13 C exhibits an inverse trend with sea-salt constituents at Ahmedabad, indicating the influence of air masses transported from the western/south-western region on carbonaceous aerosol. These results suggest that a strong heterogeneity exists in the sources of carbonaceous aerosol over this region and potential sources of non-combustion emissions such as bio-aerosol that need further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New developments at synchrotron beamlines and the ongoing upgrades of synchrotron facilities allow the possibility to study complex structures with a much better spatial and temporal resolution than ever before. However, the downside is that the data collected are also significantly larger (more than several terabytes) than ever before, and post-processing and analyzing these data is very challenging to perform manually. This issue can be solved by employing automated methods such as machine learning, which show significantly improved performance in data processing and image segmentation than manual methods. In this work, a 3D U-net deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) model with four layers and base-8 characteristic features has been developed to segment precipitates and porosities in synchrotron transmission X-ray micrograms. Transmission X-ray microscopy experiments were conducted on micropillars prepared from additively manufactured 316L steel to evaluate precipitate information. After training the 3D U-net DCNN model, it was used on unseen data and the prediction was compared with manual segmentation. A good agreement was found between both segmentations. An ablation study was performed and revealed that the proposed model showed better statistics than other models with lower numbers of layers and/or characteristic features. The proposed model is able to segment several hundreds of gigabytes of data in a few minutes and could be applied to other materials and tomography techniques. The code and the fitted weights are made available with this paper for any interested researcher to use for their needs (https://github.com/manasvupadhyay/erc-gamma-3D-DCNN). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the first time, the analysis of polymorphism of complete mitochondrial genomes was performed in three Dagestan local goat populations (n = 37), which were characterized by high genetic and haplotype diversity. We found that 90.88% of the total genetic variability was due to intragroup differences and 4.86% was due to intergroup differences. For the studied sample of goats, significant negative values of the Tajima's D and Fu's Fs neutrality indices were calculated (P < 0.05). We performed a phylogenetic analysis using the nucleotide sequences of domestic goats and bezoars belonging to different haplogroups. Our study revealed that all studied samples of Dagestan Local goats belonged to haplogroup A, which is the most frequent one in domestic goats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design of Tandem-ring (TR) applicators assembled with standard rectal retractor (RR) blades best conforms to the anatomy of a subset of patients with shallower/obliterated fornices and narrow vagina. A suboptimal rectum displacement achieved during the ICB procedure, especially in patients with roomy vagina, is less likely to be fully compensated with the process of treatment planning optimization. We indigenously developed a novel packing technique which allows for customized vaginal packing (VP) for the range of spaces, posterior and superior to RR blade in different patients. Novel technique is compared on classical International Commission on Radiation Units-38 (ICRU-38) rectal and bladder point doses with conventional technique of using RR alone. To respect contemporary dose constraints, we accept no more than 4.53 Gy (65% of 7Gy prescribed to point A) to ICRU rectal point per high-dose-rate (HDR)-ICB session. Any technique which further brings it down to 4.16 Gy (59.42% of 7Gy) or less, would lead to clinically significant reduction in the incidence of rectum toxicity. Hence, trial was designed to detect minimum 5% difference in the dose to ICRU rectal point per insertion. 47 patients who were assessed to be fit for ICB, after completion of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) to a dose of 46 to 50Gy with concurrent weekly cisplatin, were enrolled in this trial to receive 3 to 4 HDR-ICB sessions of 7Gy each. First ICB session was randomized either in conventional or interventional arm. Each patient then crossed over to receive second session in the alternate arm. Tandem length, tandem angle, ring size, RR blade and a standard loading pattern to recapitulate the pear-shaped dose distribution were kept same during both the sessions. So, two consecutive sessions done on one patient differed only with regard to rectum separation method. Remaining ICB sessions were done as per physician preference and were not analyzed for this trial. 47 ICB sessions done using RR alone constitute conventional arm and 47 in which VP was combined with RR blade constitute interventional arm. The mean dose to the ICRU rectal point was 57.70% of the prescription dose (range = 44.81-73.6%; median 56.61%) in the conventional arm and 42.54% (range = 25.66-59.45%; median 41.77%) in the interventional arm, for same dose (100%) prescribed to point A in both arms. There was 15.16% (95% CI = 12.87-17.45) reduction in mean dose to the ICRU rectal point (p<0.001) per insertion in the interventional arm. The mean dose to the ICRU bladder point was 40.96% (range =13.89-98.07%; median 39.09%) in the conventional arm and 47.13% (range 15.47-90.48%; median 44.3%) in the interventional arm. There was 6.17% (95% CI = 2.64-9.70) increase in the mean dose to the ICRU bladder point (p = 0.001). The point B dose, reference volumes and Total Reference Air Kerma (TRAK) values were similar between two arms. Novel packing technique optimizes the rectum displacement achieved primarily with standard RR blades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The continuity vs discontinuity of the elastic/plastic curvature & curvature rate, and strain & strain rate tensors is examined at non-moving surfaces of discontinuity, in the context of a field theory of crystal defects (dislocations and disclinations). Tangential continuity of these tensors derives from the conservation of the Burgers and Frank vectors over patches bridging the interface, in the limit where such patches contract onto the interface. However, normal discontinuity of these tensors remains allowed, and Kirchhoff-like compatibility conditions on their normal discontinuities across the concurring interfaces are derived at multiple junctions. In a simple plane case and in the absence of surface-disclinations, the compatibility of the normal discontinuities in the elastic curvatures assumes the form of a Young’s law between the grain-to-grain disorientations and the sines of the dihedral angles. Complete continuity of the plastic strain rate tensor at triple junctions also derives from the compatibility of the normal discontinuities in the plastic strain rates in such conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A coarse-grained extension of a recent nanoscale elasto-plastic model of polar dislocation and disclination density fields is developed to model grain boundary-mediated plasticity in polycrystals. At a small resolution length scale, the polar dislocation/disclination densities render continuously the discontinuities of the elastic displacements/rotations across grain boundaries. When the resolution length scale increases, the net polarities of a crystal defect ensemble decrease, perhaps to the point where no strain/curvature incompatibility is left in the body. The defect densities are then labeled “statistical”. However both polar and statistical dislocation/disclination densities contribute to plastic flow, and a coarse-grained mesoscopic plastic curvature rate needs to be defined. In addition, whereas it is overlooked at nanoscale where grain boundaries are seen as continua, tangential continuity of the elastic/plastic curvature/strain rates across grain boundaries needs to be considered at mesoscale, because the latter are seen as singular discontinuity interfaces. It induces long-range, grain-to-grain, elastic/plastic interactions across interfaces. The mesoscale model allow preserving the essential features of the lower scale approach. In particular, it is shown that it allows accounting for such plastic deformation mechanisms as grain boundary migration and grain boundary misorientation variation by disclination motion and concurrent dislocation nucleation, when plasticity by dislocation glide is unavailable. Accumulation of polar defect densities in the vicinity of the grain boundaries and triple lines, leading to long-range inter-granular activation of slip and grain size effects, are also predicted by the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an increasing commercial demand for nanoparticles due to their wide applicability in various areas such as electronics, catalysis, chemistry, energy, and medicine. Metallic nanoparticles are traditionally synthesized by wet chemical techniques, where the chemicals used are quite often toxic and flammable. In this work, we describe a cost effective and environment friendly technique for green synthesis of silver nanoparticles from 5mM AgNO3 solution through the extract of Argimone maxicana leaf as reducing agent as well as capping agent. Nanoparticles were characterized using UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, FTIR, XRD and SEM. X-ray diffraction and SEM analysis showed the average particle size of 30 nm as well as revealed their structure. Further these biologically synthesized nanoparticles were found to be highly toxic against different bacterial spp. The most important outcome of this work will be the development of value-added products from Argimone maxicana (a potential weed of India) for biomedical and nanotechnology based industries. This is for the first time that Argimone maxicana weed leaf extract was used for the synthesis of nanoparticles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

8-Hydroxyquinoline and imidazole, two important N-heteroaromatic systems, have a strong affinity towards various anions via their acidic OH or NH protons. Three receptor ligands, 5-(1 H -benzo[ d ]imidazol-2-yl)quinolin-8-ol (1), 5-(benzo[ d ]thiazol-2-yl)quinolin-8-ol (2), and 4-(1 H -benzo[ d ]imidazol-2-yl)benzene-1,3-diol (3), were synthesized, and their fluoride (F - ) ion binding properties were investigated. These ligands could selectively bind F - ions, and their respective F - complexes, namely, 1-TBAF, 2-TBAF, and 3-TBAF (TBAF = tetrabutylammonium fluoride), were characterized using single crystal X-ray analysis, NMR, UV-vis, Hirshfeld surface (HS) analysis and computational studies. Their solid-state structural analysis revealed that in each case, the F - ion is strongly bound within the receptor molecule scaffold through NH, OH, and aryl-CH hydrogen bonding interactions. In the case of 1-TBAF and 3-TBAF, F - binding is further strengthened by the inclusion of water molecules, forming fluoride-water cluster complexes. 1 H NMR study exhibited the disappearance of NH and OH proton signals upon the addition of TBAF, indicating that the NH and OH protons are the primary sites for F - ion coordination. UV -vis absorbance spectra was used to study their lowest sensing limits towards F - ions. Ligands 1 and 2 showed good responsiveness towards F - ions at concentrations ≥0.5 μM, with obvious changes occurring at F - concentrations of 180 and 12 μM, respectively. HS analysis quantified non-covalent interatomic contacts between the atoms and fluoride ions, revealing that 1-TBAF contributed a maximum of 19.2% of all atoms⋯F contacts to the HS. Density functional theory studies were carried out on the 1-TBAF, 2-TBAF, and 3-TBAF crystal systems, and the band structure and total density of states of the systems were evaluated. The optical response of 2-TBAF was also investigated.

Introduction: A slower adoption rate of fixed dose combinations (FDC) in diabetes management is partly due to insufficient data. This study evaluates the safety and efficacy of an FDC of dapagliflozin + sitagliptin + metformin hydrochloride extended release (XR), compared to a dual FDC of sitagliptin + metformin hydrochloride XR among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with poor glycemic control when treated with metformin monotherapy., Methods: A total of 274 patients with T2DM were randomized (1:1) to either arm X, receiving FDC of dapagliflozin (10 mg) + sitagliptin (100 mg) + metformin hydrochloride XR (1000 mg) (Dapa + Sita + Met) tablets, or arm Y, receiving sitagliptin phosphate (100 mg) + metformin hydrochloride XR (1000 mg) (Sita + Met) tablets, and treated for 16 weeks. The outcome measures included changes in hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)(%), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-h post-prandial glucose (PPG), weight, and the proportion of patients achieving target HbA1c levels of < 7.0% by week 16 of the study period., Results: The reduction in HbA1c at week 16 was significantly higher in arm X than in arm Y [estimated treatment difference (ETD), - 0.65% (95% CI - 0.76 to - 0.53; P < 0.0001)]. Arm X showed a marked decrease in FPG [ETD - 15.42 mg/dl; 95% CI (17.63, 13.22; P < 0.0001)], PPG [ETD - 30.39 mg/dl; 95% CI (35.59, 25.19; P < 0.0001)], and weight [ETD - 1.47 kg; 95% CI (1.59, 1.28; P < 0.0001)] after 16 weeks. In arm X, 54% of patients reached HbA1c < 7.0% compared to 29.9% in arm Y. The incidence of adverse events was comparable [13.14% (arm X) vs 12.4% (arm Y)]. There was no severe hypoglycemia-led treatment discontinuation., Conclusion: Among patients with T2DM who have poor glycemic control with metformin monotherapy, triple FDC (Dapa + Sita + Met) effectively helped achieve better glycemic response compared to dual FDC (Sita + Met), with a comparable safety and tolerability profile., Trial Registration: CTRI/2022/01/039857., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of Interest: Dr Aushili Mahule, Dr Ashish Prasad, Dr Abhijit Pednekar & Dr Anthuvan Thamburaj are the employees of USV Private Limited. Awadhesh Kumar Singh, Ashok Kumar Das, L Sreenivas Murthy, Samit Ghosal, Rakesh Sahay, KVS Hari Kumar, Ganesh Hosahithlu Keshava, Mayur Agarwal, G Vijayakumar, Pramila Kalra, Piyush Lodha, Sambit Das, Shehla Shaikh, Soumik Goswami, T.P Ajish, Prashant Kumthekar, Mihir Upadhyay have no nothing to disclose. The sponsors of the project were the manufacturers of the marketed product of drugs used in this study. Ethical Approval: The study was conducted, monitored, evaluated, and audited to comply with the International Conference on Harmonization Good Clinical Practice guidelines. The study was conducted in accordance with the ethical guidelines for biomedical research on human patients by the Indian Council of Medical Research, ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki, and New Drugs and Clinical Trials Rules 2019. The study also received the institutional ethics committee approval at each of the 12 study sites (Supplementary material; Table S1). The master ethics approval was obtained from Institutional Ethics Committee, Maharaja Agrasen Superspecialty Hospital (IEC/APV/JAN/2022/07). Informed written consent was obtained from all the study participants., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

During the past 3000 years, cattle on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau have developed adaptive phenotypes under the selective pressure of hypoxia, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and extreme cold. The genetic mechanism underlying this rapid adaptation is not yet well understood. Here, we present whole-genome resequencing data for 258 cattle from 32 cattle breeds/populations, including 89 Tibetan cattle representing eight populations distributed at altitudes ranging from 3400 m to 4300 m. Our genomic analysis revealed that Tibetan cattle exhibited a continuous phylogeographic cline from the East Asian taurine to the South Asian indicine ancestries. We found that recently selected genes in Tibetan cattle were related to body size (HMGA2 and NCAPG) and energy expenditure (DUOXA2). We identified signals of sympatric introgression from yak into Tibetan cattle at different altitudes, covering 0.64%-3.26% of their genomes, which included introgressed genes responsible for hypoxia response (EGLN1), cold adaptation (LRP11), DNA damage repair (LATS1), and UV radiation resistance (GNPAT). We observed that introgressed yak alleles were associated with noncoding variants, including those in present EGLN1. In Tibetan cattle, three yak introgressed SNPs in the EGLN1 promoter region reduced the expression of EGLN1, suggesting that these genomic variants enhance hypoxia tolerance. Taken together, our results indicated complex adaptation processes in Tibetan cattle, where recently selected genes and introgressed yak alleles jointly facilitated rapid adaptation to high-altitude environments., (Copyright © 2024 Science China Press. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: This study compared the achieved tooth movement to that predicted in the preliminary simulated digital treatment plan between adults and teenagers., Materials and Methods: Records of 60 patients (30 adults; mean age: 36.6 ± 11.36 years, and 30 teenagers; mean age: 16.23 ± 2.25 years) were randomly selected. Initial and predicted models were obtained from the initial simulated treatment plan. The first model of the refinement scan was labeled as achieved. SlicerCMF software (version 3.1; https://www.slicer.org ) was used to superimpose the achieved and predicted digital models over the initial ones with regional superimposition on relatively stable first molars. 600 teeth were measured in each group for horizontal, vertical, angular movements, and transverse dimensions. Accuracy was defined as the achieved amount of movement minus predicted and was calculated for each individual and compared between teens and adults., Results: The mandibular inter-canine width accuracy was statistically significant between groups (p = 0.050). Significant under-correction in horizontal movements was noted for mandibular first premolars in teenagers compared to adults (p = 0.037). There was considerable over-correction in horizontal movements for mandibular central and lateral incisors between groups (p < 0.05). No significant difference was observed between groups in the vertical plane. Rotations were underachieved for maxillary first premolars, more in adults than teenagers (p = 0.017)., Conclusion: The accuracy of achieved versus predicted tooth movement between adults and teenagers was significant for the inter-canine width. Mandibular central and lateral incisors showed significantly greater over-correction in adults in the horizontal plane. The accuracy of rotations and vertical movements was comparable., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Since its inception nearly a half century ago, CHARMM has been playing a central role in computational biochemistry and biophysics. Commensurate with the developments in experimental research and advances in computer hardware, the range of methods and applicability of CHARMM have also grown. This review summarizes major developments that occurred after 2009 when the last review of CHARMM was published. They include the following: new faster simulation engines, accessible user interfaces for convenient workflows, and a vast array of simulation and analysis methods that encompass quantum mechanical, atomistic, and coarse-grained levels, as well as extensive coverage of force fields. In addition to providing the current snapshot of the CHARMM development, this review may serve as a starting point for exploring relevant theories and computational methods for tackling contemporary and emerging problems in biomolecular systems. CHARMM is freely available for academic and nonprofit research at https://academiccharmm.org/program.

Introduction: This study aimed to compare the efficiency of temporary anchorage devices (TADs) and fixed functional appliances (FFAs) for mandibular molar protraction., Methods: Orthodontic records of 1050 consecutively treated patients with molar protraction were screened. Thirty-six records (22 females and 14 males; mean age, 17.4 years) were divided into two groups: TAD (21 subjects with 25 edentulous spaces) and FFA (15 subjects with 24 edentulous spaces). The primary outcome measure was the efficiency of protraction [magnitude and time required for protraction (rate) and anchor loss (AL)]. The secondary outcomes involved measuring the type of tooth movement (TOTM), external apical root resorption (EARR), alveolar bone height change (ABHC), alveolar bone width change (ABWC) and appliance failure., Results: The rate of tooth movement was significantly higher for FFAs (0.83 ± 0.35 mm/month) versus TADs (0.49 ± 0.2 mm/month) (P = .005). Total treatment duration was less for FFAs (34.78 ± 8.1 months) versus TADs (47.72 ± 13.94 months) (P = .002). TOTM was similar for both (P = .909). EARR was 1.42 ± 1.38 mm for TAD and 1.25 ± 0.88 mm for FFA (P = .81). ABHC increased in the FFA group (1.01 ± 3.62 mm) and decreased for the TAD group (0.68 ± 1.66 mm). ABWC increased for both TAD (1.81 ± 1.73 mm) and FFA (1.75 ± 1.35 mm). The failure rate was 50% for FFAs and 33% for TADs., Conclusions: Both systems provided translation of lower molars with comparable anchorage control. However, FFAs were more efficient than TADs for lower molar protraction., (© 2024 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate if there are any morphologic, positional, and volumetric differences in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) of patients with unilateral posterior crossbite (UPC) compared to controls. Another objective was to analyse the discrepancy in the TMJ between the crossbite versus non-crossbite side in UPC versus right and left sides in controls. Additionally, this study aimed to evaluate the differences in the bone density at the masseteric insertion site at the angle of mandible in the UPC group and control group., Material and Methods: One hundred and thirty-two CBCTs were analysed with 66 patients in UPC group and 66 patients in control group (non-crossbite). Temporomandibular joint spaces - Anterior joint space (AJS), Superior joint space (SJS), Posterior joint space (PJS), Medial joint space (MJS), Middle joint space (MiJS), and Lateral joint space (LJS) were measured. Additionally, bone density at angle of mandible and volume of mandibular condyle were evaluated. The measurements were compared between the groups as well as between the crossbite and non-crossbite sides within the UPC group and between right and left sides within the control group. Furthermore, the associations between UPC and changes in TMJ regarding joint space availability, bone density, condylar head volume, and the effects of sex and age were evaluated using regression analysis., Results: It was observed that UPC group showed a greater condylar volume, than the control group. Additionally, a larger mean discrepancy was observed between the crossbite side and non-crossbite side within the UPC group concerning condylar volume than controls. Concerning age, condylar volume was observed to be larger in adults than children. Adults showed significantly greater bone density and condylar volume than adolescents. Concerning sex, it was observed that males showed a larger SJS (right), MiJS, LJS, and bone density at the mandibular angle than females., Conclusion: There is a difference in the TMJ parameters particularly condylar volume in patients with UPC compared to controls., (Copyright © 2024 CEO. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Posterior Crossbite is a common condition resulting because of transverse maxillary deficiency. The growth of the craniofacial complex finishes first in the transverse dimension, followed by sagittal and vertical dimensions. Conventional rapid palatal expansion (RPE) appliances are commonly used to correct transverse maxillary deficiency. Although RPE is efficient in correcting posterior crossbite, it results in dental side effects such as buccal tipping of maxillary molars, root resorption, bone dehiscence, and relapse. Mini-implant-assisted RPE has been introduced to increase the skeletal effects of expansion especially in patients with increased maturation and greater interdigitation of midpalatal suture. This article will review the biomechanics of RPE and mini-implant-assisted RPE. Additionally, the different designs of MARPE and the long-term clinical effects of expansion appliances will also be discussed in detail., (Copyright © 2024 World Federation of Orthodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE) are critical for the proper function of the retina. RPE dysfunction is involved in the pathogenesis of important retinal diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and diabetic retinopathy. We present a streamlined approach for the isolation of RPE from murine adult eyes. In contrast to previously reported methods, this approach enables the isolation and culture of highly pure RPE from adult mice. This simple and fast method does not require extensive technical skill and is achievable with basic scientific tools and reagents. Primary RPE are isolated from C57BL/6 background mice aged 3- to 14-weeks by enucleation of the eye followed by the removal of the anterior segment. Enzymatic trypsinization and centrifugation are used to dissociate and isolate the RPE from the eyecup. In conclusion, this approach offers a quick and effective protocol for the utilization of RPE in the study of retinal function and disease.